A Midnight Clear
by mamapranayama
Summary: Trapped on a desolate world for Christmas, Sam and Daniel must find a way to celebrate the holiday on their own. Totally S/D! Written for Eventhorizon7's Silly Season Challenge on Amaranth Traces. Now Complete
1. Chapter 1

**Author Note**: This story was written for Eventhorizon7's Silly Season challenge on Amaranth Traces and Thraesja's website, so thanks to Eventhorizon7 for the great plot set-up. The challenge is to write a story where Sam and Daniel become stranded on a planet by themselves for Christmas and must find a way to celebrate on their own and grow closer as a result. If you're a fan of Sam and Daniel shippiness then you owe it to yourself to check out this website Thraesja and Amaranth Traces have put together. It's a lot of fun and you should check out their stories as well, they're really great! :)

Disclaimer: As always, I owe no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters. No profit is intended and believe me, none is recieved.

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**A Midnight Clear**

by Mamapranayama

**December 23rd**

Vala moaned for the tenth time in the last half hour and Daniel stopped brushing dirt off the wall in front of him and lowered his hands, turning to her in annoyance and frustration. He had been trying to ignore her and get some translations from the the walls of this deserted temple before the sun went down, but her ever increasing need for attention was finally wearing him down.

"Something wrong?" He sighed, looking to her over the tops of his glasses.

"I'm not feeling very well, Daniel. My stomach hurts and I think I might have eaten something bad."

"We've been eating MRE's for the last two days, of course you've eaten something bad."

"No, Daniel. This is different. I really feel like....like..." She stopped cold and then she was up and running out of the abandoned temple, covering her mouth as she fled. Worried that something was actually wrong this time he went after her, finding her just outside the entrance, losing her lunch into the dry tall grass beside the outer walls.

"You okay, Vala?" he asked concerned when she was finished.

"Do I look okay to you, Daniel?"She flopped onto her bottom, drawing her legs up to her chest and resting her head on her knees. Feeling for her obvious distress, Daniel sat next to her and put a hand over her forehead.

"You've got a fever."

"Thank-you, _Dr._ Jackson." She began sarcastically. "With that astute diagnosis I wonder why it is that you haven't been awarded a doctorate in medicine yet, especially since you seem to have one in everything else." Daniel merely rolled his eyes, knowing she was just a little testy because of her illness.

"How long have you been like this?"

"All day....thanks for noticing, by the way."

"Why didn't you say something sooner?"

"I did, Daniel. But you were too absorbed in your temple to hear me."

"Sorry." He patted her on the back sympathetically, feeling guilty. She had been feeling miserable all day and he had chalked it up to her just being dramatic.

"We should call Mitchell and tell him you need to go back." She just nodded without looking up, keeping her head on her knees. Daniel clicked on his radio.

"Mitchell...It's Daniel, come in, please."

"Go ahead, Jackson."

"Vala's sick, she needs to go home"

"Stay put. Sam and I will be right there."

"Alright, see you when you get here." He switched off his radio and dug his canteen out of the side cargo pocket on his pants, handing it to her. She shook her head, refusing the water.

"C'mon, Vala. You gotta drink something or you'll get dehydrated."

"I just don't think I can stand to put anything into my stomach right now."

"Just give it a try."

"Fine." She sighed and grabbed the canteen, taking a few sips and handing it back to Daniel, satisfying his nurturing side for the moment. As promised, Mitchell and Sam approached a few minutes later.

It was just the four of them on this mission, for Teal'c was off visiting his son and daughter-in-law as they expected their first child to be born at any time. Thinking of Teal'c, Daniel felt a slight pang of envy for his friend's growing family. He had always hoped that one day he could have the kind of family he never had growing up, especially around this time of year when people were getting together with their families for the Holidays. However, as middle age approached and that dream family had still yet to materialize, he put those dreams on the back burner, possibly for good.

"What's going on?" Mitchell asked as the walked up to the duo.

"Vala's got some sort of stomach bug, she needs to go back." It only took one look at the unusually sedate and hunched over form of their resident thief-turned-teammate for Mitchell to come to a decision.

"Okay, let's pack it up and go home." He ordered. That's when Sam shifted on her heels and spoke up.

"Actually, I was kinda hoping that I could spend a little more time exploring that ridge nearby. I was getting some pretty strange energy readings from over there and I wanted to check it out. Maybe one of you could go back with Vala and the other one stay so I could collect more data. It shouldn't take long, no more than an hour or so."

Mitchell nodded. He couldn't really argue that they all needed to go back. They were still scheduled to be on the planet for another day anyway. Daniel knew that the planet itself offered very little that Cam was interested in. Virtually lifeless, It was completely abandoned long ago by a group of people that Daniel believed were decended from the ancient Greeks and all that was left standing was the mostly ruined temple. Whoever had lived here had been gone for ages. Daniel had only made it half-way through transcribing everything on the walls and wanted to get it all down so he could study it in greater detail later, then maybe he could learn what had happened to them.

"I'll stay with Sam. That way I can also finish up in the temple." Daniel offered.

"Gee, thanks for all of your support, Daniel." Vala griped. He figured she would be upset for staying instead of taking her back, but she wasn't seriously ill and Mitchell would get her back safely. After all, this might be his only chance to get everything translated from the walls.

"I'm sorry." Daniel sighed. "Look, we'll be back in a few hours, it's not like you're on your deathbed."

"Not yet, anyway." She came back, serving him a deadly look.

"Alright." Mitchell interrupted their spat. "You two can stay here and finish geeking out and I'll take the Princess back home. Just promise me you two will stick together and not get lost or hurt or killed or anything else that would piss me off. You guys have two hours, then I expect you to call back. Got it?"

"We can do that." Sam nodded.

"I think we handle ourselves for a couple of hours, Mitchell." Daniel added.

"Well, sure you can. I just don't want you two finding any excuses for missing that Christmas party tonight. One of you is getting my secret Santa gift and I spent an awful lot of time and energy picking it out."

"Notice how he didn't say money." Daniel pointed out jokingly.

"It's the thought that counts, right?" Stooping down, Mitchell offered a hand to Vala and pulled her up.

"Ready to go?"

"Sure, it you don't mind carrying me." She smiled wanly and shivered, her attempt at humor doing very little to make her look any less miserable.

"Don't press it, Your Highness." Cam countered as he led her towards the Stargate situated just beyond the site of the ruins, leaving Sam and Daniel behind. They watched until Mitchell and Vala disappeared through the event horizon, only turning to each other once the gate deactivated.

"So, temple or ridge first?" Daniel asked her.

"Flip a coin?" she asked. Daniel dug around in his pockets, but could find no money and Sam couldn't either.

"Okay....rock, paper, scissors?" He asked her. In response, Sam held out her fist and the two scientists pumped their hands three times, Daniel ending with two fingers made to look like scissors and Sam with a closed fist, made to be a rock.

"Yes!" She exclaimed. "Rock crushes scissors!" Laughing, she took her closed fist and made to crush Daniel's outstretched fingers with it.

"Damn." He swore. "I knew I should have gone with rock."

"Well, let's get going. Daylight's burning and we need call Mitchell in just a couple of hours." Agreeing that they needed to hurry in order to get all of their work done in the time alloted, Daniel and Sam took off in the direction of the ridge, side-by-side.

OOOOO

Satisfied with Dr. Lam's diagnosis that Vala indeed just had a stomach virus and would be fine with a couple days of rest and fluids, Mitchell left her in the infirmary. She was still pretty pissed off that Daniel had remained off-world with Sam and after nearly two hours of listening to her complain about it, he excused himself and headed for the control room.

Daniel and Sam were due to contact them at any time and he would feel a lot better knowing that his team was all safe and sound back home. It had been against his better judgment to let them stay behind and a feeling gnawed at him that something could go wrong. Despite the fact that the planet had been a complete bore to him and appeared to be completed desolate, he had learned from experience that even the most innocent seeming of places could hold hidden dangers that one could not see at first.

Entering the control room, Mitchell came to stand behind Walter Harriman, who was discussing something rather heatedly with Dr. Felger sitting beside him. Mitchell groaned a little to himself. He was not a big fan of the scientist and he wondered how the man had managed to retain his job after so many failures in the past, including a computer virus that nearly destroyed the entire stargate network in the galaxy.

"Are you sure Col. Carter authorized this program?"

"Well, she did say it sounded like a good idea and I have the go ahead from the General."

"Still, shouldn't we wait until she gets back?"

"When she sees how much smoother the transition from the computer to the iris is, she'll be thrilled." He stated confidently.

"If you say so, Dr. Felger." Harriman gave Felger a wary look as Mitchell approached.

"What's going on here?" He asked the two men behind the computers.

"Oh, Colonel Mitchell." Felger looked behind, addressing him. "I've developed a new sub-routine that should decrease the lag time between the computer controls up here and the iris down below, making it more efficient." Felger turned to Harriman again. "I'm implementing the program now, Sgt. Harriman. Next time the Iris receives the command to close, we should see a dramatic improvement."

"It's seems pretty fast to me, I never even noticed a lag before." Mitchell told him.

"Well, there is one, nearly half a second." Felger replied.

"Is all of this really necessary? I mean half a second isn't all that long." Mitchell came back. He was no computer expert, but it all seemed like a bit too much ado about nothing.

"Think of all of those times where you come in hot and you need to get the iris closed as fast as possible to keep the bad guys at bay." Felger grew excited as he explained, dramatically gesturing with his hands as his speech sped up. "With this new program, we should be able to decrease that lag by nearly 10 %." Felger beamed proudly.

"Wow, 10% you say?" Mitchell began with a sarcastic tone in his voice that Felger failed to pick up on. It was then that the Stargate came to life, it's chevrons lighting up.

"Incoming wormhole." Harriman announced. Seconds later the event horizon splashed outward before rushing back towards the gate.

"I'm shutting the iris, prepare to record the lag time." Felger ordered the Sergeant with glee. Smoothly and efficiently the iris slid shut with a metallic clink. Felger watched in amazement as the readings came in.

"Wow! The lag time was actually improved by more than 11%, that's much faster that we could have hoped for. Colonel Carter's jaw is gonna drop when she sees these readings." excitedly the scientist continued to analyze his data while Mitchell really could have cared less. He was much more interested in making sure his team was alright.

"Receiving a radio transmission, sir" Harriman informed him.

"That's gotta be Sam and Jackson. Open up the channel." Harriman pressed a few buttons and nodded to Mitchell, letting him know the frequency was open.

"Stargate Command, this is Colonel Carter, please respond."

"We hear you Carter. Go ahead."

"We're all done here, Colonel. That energy reading was just a naturally occuring magnetic field generated by some magnetized rock in the ridge face and Daniel's finished with his work in the temple."

"Good to hear." Mitchel said, relieved that nothing of consequence had happened to his friends while they were on their own. "Let's get you two back home then."

"We're ready to go whenever you give us the green light to cross over, Colonel." Carter responded.

"Open the iris up, Walter." Mitchell ordered. Harriman typed in the commands for the iris, but after several seconds it remained shut. Mitchell turned to Felger.

"I thought this program of yours was supposed to improve the lag time?"

"It is." He blustered and blubbered. "At least for when it closes.....I'm not sure what the problem could be. Try it again, Sergeant." Again, Harriman entered the commands and yet the iris remained shut. Mitchell shot an angry glare towards Felger, who shrunk back in his chair.

"Must be some kinda bug with the program." Felger admitted guiltily, trying to work the problem out from his computer console.

"Ya think?" Mitchell nearly yelled.

"Do we have the go ahead to come in?" Daniel asked this time across the radio.

"Negative, we're having a problem with the iris, Jackson. Seems our Dr. Felger has messed with its program. Just hold tight till we can get it fixed."

"He did what?!" He heard Carter's distant and angered voice through Daniel's radio. Felger began to sweat profusely.

"I'm getting fired, aren't I?"

_**To be continued......**_

_Hope you might like this. Don't be afraid of that feedback button down below, I love hearing from y'all! :)_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: As always, I owe no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters. No profit is intended and believe me, none is recieved.

_Thank-you for all of the reviews everyone. I love hearing what y'all think about my story. :)_

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**Chapter 2**

After a lengthy and profanity laced conversation with Dr. Felger, Sam and Daniel had learned that they were going to be stuck on the planet for a while. The good news was that they had enough provisions to last for several days. The bad news was that Felger had made a bigger mess of the iris control program than anyone had realized at first and he would have to go through the program line by line in order to isolate the problem. In the mean time, all Daniel and Sam could do was wait.

Sam was so angry she could shit a brick. Felger had mentioned to her several months ago that a program to increase the efficiency of the iris was something he had been working on and she had merely given him a somewhat favorable response. But she had never imagined that he would go over her head and go to the General with his program before she had a chance to look it over first.

Frustrated, Sam began to pace. If only she could be there, then she could help with the program and fix Felger's mistakes. Then after that was done she could wring his scrawny little neck before she fired him.

Daniel sat on a log next to their tents, starting a fire. It was starting to get chilly out as the sun began to set, but she was still too charged up to care. Getting a healthy blaze going, Daniel called to her while she continued her harried pacing across the campsite.

"Sit down, Sam. You're making me tired just watching you."

"How can you be so calm about this, Daniel?"

"Well, there's not much we can do about it from here. We might as well settle in for the wait."

Sam sighed as she plopped down onto the log next to Daniel, still extremely pissed, but realizing that he was right and that getting mad was only a waste of energy. She'd just have to be patient.

Daniel poked at the fire making it burn brighter and Sam finally noticed how cold it had become and held out her hands to its warmth. Daniel handed a MRE to her and in silence, they ate dinner.

"So...." Daniel started a little uncomfortably after they had finished with their meal. Sam had to admit that things had been somewhat strained between the two friends since she came back from Atlantis. Vala was with Daniel almost at all times, making it difficult for her to come to Daniel with any of her issues anymore and he rarely just showed up at her lab looking to talk like he used to. Sadly, Sam had felt that the closeness they had shared years before had faded. Sure they were still friends and teammates. But best friends? Maybe not anymore. Vala had usurped that title from her and whenever she thought of just going to talk to Daniel about something, she felt like she was intruding on them.

She wasn't necessarily jealous of Vala though. She was happy that Daniel had someone that took away some of that loneliness that had plagued him over the years since Sha're died. She just kinda wished she didn't feel like such a stranger to him anymore.

"So....." She replied.

"Guess we're going to miss the Christmas party tonight." He said, looking to make small talk.

"Yeah, guess so." She replied. She had actually been looking forward to the party but it looked like they might be missing out on Christmas altogether this year.

"It's been a while since it was just you and me." He gave her sweet smile and she hoped that was a sign that things weren't as bad as she imagined between them.

"Yeah, it has." She agreed.

"Kinda missed it."

"Me too." Sam said softly and nodded absently, staring into the fire and watching the blaze dance around as the darkness deepened around them. They never used to be silent like this when they were around each other years ago. She recalled all of the late night conversations they used to share, the collaborations, the mutual respect and admiration they both shared for one another and for each other's work. What had really happened? She couldn't pin-point it exactly, it was like they were on two different ships crossing paths on the ocean, slowly drifting further and further apart with the currents. Why couldn't she get that feeling back again, why couldn't she talk to Daniel anymore?

"We should, uh...go to bed soon." Daniel said interrupting her thoughts "Hopefully, Felger will have everything fixed in the morning."

"I sure hope so. I don't think I could take much more of this place."

"Is it that bad being stuck here with me?" he joked. She smiled weakly back at him.

"Course not, it's just not the most interesting place to be stranded just before Christmas." He nodded. It really was a boring planet. The Stargate and the ruins of the temple were situated in the middle of a prairie with just a few dry trees here and there. All one could see for miles was dried grass, dried grass and more dried grass. The only interesting terrain feature had been the ridge and even that was nothing more than an small outcropping of rocks. Even Daniel seemed a little bored with the temple. He had already translated all of the temple walls and had learned little more than that the inhabitants had decided to move on to another planet when the land began to dry up. So here they were with little to do, less to talk about and an awkwardness growing between them.

"You're right, maybe we should just go to bed. It is getting pretty late and we've had a long day." She got up and made a point to stretch, yawn and at least appear to be tired when in fact she was still really keyed up. She just didn't think she could stand the gulf that existed between them for much longer. Daniel nodded, his eyes fixed on the fire, reflecting off of his glasses. She could see he was deep in thought.

"I'll stay up for a while and keep watch on the fire." He said distantly. "I'll wake you up in a few hours

"Okay, then.....Good-night." Sam headed for her tent.

"'Night." Daniel called to her.

Once inside the safety and privacy of her tent, Sam laid down, staring at the ceiling of the tent, lost in her thoughts. She could only hope that she wouldn't have to stay here too much longer with Daniel. Things were just too uncomfortable between them. She wanted to fix it, but was unsure how. Sleep was elusive as she pondered the problem, but eventually she drifted off and fell into a deep sleep.

OOOOO

Daniel sat on the log, staring into the fire. Sam had gone to bed, obviously wanting to escape his presence and that left an aching place in his chest. There had been a time when Sam had been more than just a friend to him, but things had changed so much over the years. The whole mess with the Ori and Adria had left him exhausted more than he cared to admit and with Vala around, he was constantly distracted. He was realizing now how much that had affected his friendship with Sam.

She had been gone for a whole year to Atlantis, but he had to admit, he hadn't been as good at corresponding with her as he could have been. He made excuses to himself for not writing or emailing her more often, like they were busy catching all of the Ba'al clones or work had been piling up, but in truth, he just didn't want to face the fact that he and Sam just weren't the best of friends that they had been before.

When he thought about it, he came to the conclusion that things began to change when Jack left for Washington, Sam went to area 51 and Teal'c went to Dakara. Left alone, the team broken up, Daniel felt abandoned. It was a feeling he was well acquainted and all he wanted to do was run away from it.

Unable to stand the thought of having to join another team or to be a part of SG1 without his friends, Daniel decided instead to head for Atlantis. He always wanted to go there anyway and he could think of no better place to escape to than another galaxy altogether.

Then Vala came along, disrupting his plans for escaping his loneliness in the city of the Ancients and thrusting him into a new conflict with the Ori. Fueled by his guilt in having exposed the galaxy to the Ori threat, the last few years he had been unable to focus on much of anything besides ridding the Galaxy of the evil ascended beings and as a result his relationships had suffered. Especially, his friendship with Sam. Even to the point where when he had been taken by Adria and turned into a Prior he could sense that she didn't trust him and the plan he and Merlin had come up with to destroy the Ori.

Far worse than not being as successful with Merlin's plan as he had hoped, were the looks of distrust Sam had given him before he reverted back to his normal self. Things just hadn't been the same since. They were still friendly and they didn't avoid each other, but neither did they seek each other out as they once had.

At his feet, he unintentionally kicked at a branch that he had collected earlier to throw into the fire. Noticing a curious formation on it's side he picked it up an examined it. A thought came to his head and he whipped out his swiss army knife, selecting a sharp blade. Using the knife, he started to whittle, stripping the branch of bark and using the repetitive motion of the blade against the wood to distract him from thinking too deeply about his dimming friendship with Sam. Maybe it wasn't too late to turn things around for them, but then again, maybe it was.

He worked on his creation for a couple of hours until it had become the object he wanted it to be. Dropping the little figurine into his pocket, he cleaned up his mess, throwing scraps of bark and wood shavings into the fire before dousing the flames and heading into his own tent for the night in order to slip into an uneasy sleep.

_**More to come soon......**_


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: As always, I owe no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters. No profit is intended and believe me, none is recieved.

_Sorry this chapter is pretty short, but I'll update again tomorrow, promise.:)_

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**Chapter 3**

**December 24th **

As the sun rose, the biting chill in the air made Sam want to crawl further into her sleeping bag and never come out again. However, the smell of fresh coffee awakened her senses and reminded her stomach that it was time to eat. She slid out of her covers and pulled back the flap of her tent, making her way to the source of the smell.

It was a glorious morning. Fog had settled overnight and now the sun was just beginning to burn it off, rising up across the horizon in a myriad of reds, oranges and purples. She breathed in the crisp and clean air. Daniel was no where to be seen, but the fire was going and the coffee pot he always supplied for their off-world excursions was resting nearby the log they sat on last night. Just as she thought she might need to radio him and find out where he was, he appeared coming from the direction of the Stargate, materializing from the fog with his breath blowing out in steamy puffs.

Sam grabbed some coffee as he came near and took a seat next to her on the log. His face was flushed from his excursion and glowing red from the cold, making his blue eyes stand out in stark contrast to his skin. He reached for a mug and poured some coffee for himself.

"Morning." He greeted.

"Morning." She returned, sipping the hot beverage, letting it warm her cold fingers. "Thanks for making coffee."

"Well, I made it purely for selfish reasons, but you're welcome anyway." He smiled, then just as quickly his face fell. "I just came back from talking to Mitchell and Dr. Felger. They're still working on the iris, it might be another day....or two."

Sam sighed. That was not what she wanted to hear.

"Sorry, Sam. I hope you didn't have any plans for Christmas."

"No. No plans this year. Mark is going to Texas with his family to visit his in-laws, so I'm on my own. What about you? Did you have any plans?"

"No. But I'm pretty sure Vala would have been pestering me to go do something." Sam nodded and bristled a bit at hearing Vala's name come up._ I'm not Jealous, I'm not jealous _she repeated to herself as a mantra. Daniel was silent again and drank some more coffee.

"Some Christmas. Huh?" Sam asked.

"It could be worse; at least I have good company." Daniel gave her little grin.

"Same here" She smiled back. Things settled again into that uncomfortable silence that had plagued them the night before. Daniel tapped his fingers onto his mug and stared into his drink. She needed to do something about that, things couldn't go on like this forever. She needed to cut to the chase and tell him what was bothering her once and for all. She wanted to just let it all out, tell him how much she missed his friendship and missed their closeness, but she couldn't find the right words and before she could say anything he was getting up from their perch and walking off.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

"Sorry. Nature calls."

"Oh..." He walked off and out of sight. A stiff breeze blew in and stirred up the flames of the fire, chilling Sam as it passed through her layers of clothing. It was definitely getting colder and ominous clouds were gathering in the distance. The unmistakable dusty smell of rain wafted to her nose and she worried that they may be in for some nasty weather that would be sure to make things quite miserable for them. Deciding that she would need warmer clothes, she went into her tent and grabbed her field jacket, gloves and cap.

Stepping back outside, glad for bringing her cold-weather gear, she saw that Daniel had returned and gone back to his tent for his coat, hat and gloves as well and was pulling the cap over his head as she came back to the log he was sitting on. Looking at him, she couldn't help but smile; he looked just like a little boy ready to go out and play in the snow.

"Getting pretty cold." he pointed out.

"Sure is." She agreed. That damned silence crept up again. He looked to the ground avoiding her eyes

"You want to go for a walk?" He asked suddenly looking up, shattering the quiet and surprising her. "Beats sitting around here freezing our asses off." He reasoned.

"Good point." She stood and gestured with her hand."Lead the way."

Daniel set off with Sam by his side. They said little, just walked aimlessly for a while until Sam could stand the quiet no more. There were things that needed to be said and she was going to say them now while they still had the opportunity to work things out alone.

"Daniel?" She started. She paused, biting her lip, unsure of how to proceed with this long-overdue talk.

"Yeah?"

"Where do we stand...you and I? Are we still friends?"

"What do you mean? Of course, we're friends."

"I mean....I know we're still _friendly_, but are we _friends?_ I think you know as well as I do that things aren't as easy between us as they used to be....I used to feel like I could come to you for anything, but now....."

Daniel stopped and looked off in the distance, not meeting her eyes. There was a hardness set into his jaw as she spoke and he ground his teeth.

"Do we have to talk about this now?" He asked, keeping his eyes on the horizon.

"Look at me." She demanded.

He turned to her with a pleading look in his eyes.

"What else do we have to talk about, Daniel? We're stuck her together and I for one am getting pretty tired with just talking about the weather. We've been needing to get this out in the open for a long time. What happened to us?"

"A lot happened Sam. You know it. We're just not the same people we used to be."

"Don't give me that bullshit!" Her sudden anger surprised even her and Daniel was taken aback. "I want to know why we haven't had even one meaningful conversation together since I came back from Atlantis. It's been almost four months for God's sake!"

"Alright, you want to know the truth?" Daniel was beginning to get heated now as well. "Well, I want to know the truth too. Why is it you left for Area 51, Sam? Because if you want to know what happened between us, we start there. You left, then Jack left then Teal'c left and everything fell apart after that. You never talked about your reasons other than you wanted to be near Cassie. But she was already in college two states away from you. I want to know what really happened. Something went on between you and Jack, didn't it? He won't talk about this either and I'm getting pretty damn tired of all of the secrets you two have been keeping."

Sam put her hands on her hips. This talk she wanted to have to straighten things out between them was going worse than she ever imagined.

"Daniel....."

"You brought this up, Sam. You want answers, well so do I!" She gave him an angry stare and before she realized what was happening, she was blurting the secret that had kept her running first to area 51 and then all the way out to Atlantis. One that she had never intended for Daniel to hear.

"Fine.... Jack and I slept together. There, are you happy? Now you know why I left." Sam's feet couldn't have carried her fast enough from Daniel at that moment. Her only thoughts were to escape and get away from him. Running as fast as she could, she left him standing by himself in the cold.

To Be Continued........


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: I do not own Stargate SG1 or any of it's characters, I post this strictly for entertainment purposes._

_************_

**Chapter 4**

Daniel was in shock. He had always suspected that something had happened between Jack and Sam, but not this. He just wondered why neither one of them trusted him enough to tell him. Why the secrecy? He knew that it was against regulations for either one of them to have sexual relations while they were both under the same chain of command, but Daniel wouldn't have said anything. They had to know that.

Sam was running off and Daniel was still too hurt and confused to chase after her, but after a few moments of reflection, he decided he needed the whole story and he took off running in her direction. She hadn't gotten too far and he found her sitting on the ground next to a dried up tree, crying.

"Go away, Daniel." She sniffed. "I don't want to talk about this right now." He stood his ground, crossing his arms.

"Nope. Not moving." To make his point he sat his bottom down on the cold ground across from her.

She silently cried for a few more moments before regaining some composure and she lifted her head to him, squinting her red rimmed eyes in his direction. He shuffled a bit closer and put a hand on her knee.

"Okay.... From the beginning. What happened?" He asked.

"It's complicated."

"Yeah, I get that." He replied testily, taking an unconscious page out of Jack's book.

"Okay, the beginning, right?" She took a deep breath and began. "It happened just after that trip we all took to Jack's cabin, remember that?" Daniel nodded. "Well, when we got back you went to that conference in San Diego and Teal'c left to visit Ry'ac. I was feeling pretty lonely and Jack knew I was having a hard time after breaking up with Pete and with Dad's death, so he came over one night with a box of pizza to cheer me up and just watch a movie or two. But stupid me, I had to tell him that I broke up with Pete because I had feelings for him and then I kissed him." She looked back down at the ground, picking at some grass before glancing his way again. "I have another confession....When I said that I slept with him before, that wasn't entirely true, I just wanted you off my case back there and I was angry.... I'm sorry."

"It's okay, we both said some things. I'm sorry I pushed." Daniel replied softly.

"Jack and I came awfully close though and at the time I was certain that was what I wanted." Sam started recounting again. "But he worried he might be taking advantage of my mixed up emotions and backed off. I was mad at the time, but now...I'm glad he did. "

Daniel listened intensely as she continued. "Afterwards, I think we both felt horrible about losing control like that and we both talked and agreed that neither one of us should ever mention it again and a part of me knew that while he was attracted to me, his feelings didn't run as deep for me as mine did for him. So, I requested a transfer and went to Area 51. I just wanted to get as far from him and everything else that had gone wrong with my life at that time and with the Goa'uld mostly taken care of, I didn't feel so guilty leaving. Especially after he decided to pass up retirement again and go to Washington. That's when I knew for sure that things were never going to happen between us."

"You still have feelings for him?" Daniel asked carefully.

"Not so much anymore..." She shook her head, looking off in the distance. "Being in Atlantis really help me gain some perspective, I think I needed that year away to get my head on straight again and now that I'm back I can honestly say that I'm over those feelings. He'll always be a friend; we've been through too much for him not to be and he's a perfect gentleman, but....Whatever we had is over now."

"I'm sorry, Sam. But why didn't you just tell me sooner? I would have understood."

"It was just too hard, Daniel. And Jack didn't want anyone to know about it, even you. Besides," She paused as though searching for the right words. "it's been difficult trying to talk to you lately."

"Why? You know I've always there if you needed someone to listen."

"I know Daniel, it's just that....."

"What?"

"Vala's always there and I don't want to get in the way of you two...."

"Vala? You won't talk to me because of Vala?"

"Oh come off it, Daniel." She responded with a hint of bitterness. "I know she can't get enough of you and you two just seem to be so, so...."

"So.... what?" He asked and her shoulders slumped.

"Like the way we used to be."

Silence again stretched between them as the wind picked up speed and tiny drops of rain began to fall.

"Oh...." Was all Daniel could find to say.

"So, are you in love with Vala?" Sam asked. Daniel gave a short little laugh and shook his head.

"No, but I'll admit that we have an understanding of each other and we are friends, but it's not the same as the kind of friendship you and I used to have. She doesn't challenge me in the same ways and I can't talk to her on the same level. You know what I mean? She's fun, I'll admit, but she's a big pain in the ass on most days."

"And yet you don't seem to mind her hanging all over you." Daniel sighed at that statement.

"What are you trying to say here, Sam?" Daniel asked before a sudden realization hit. "Wait a sec....are you jealous?"

Sam turned her head away.

"Oh my God. You are jealous.....why?"

"I just miss being the one you came to with your problems, now it's her you go to. And I miss it when you would come down to my lab just to hang out or talk, but you don't go out of your way to see me anymore." She sighed heavily and admitted "I don't know. Maybe I am a little jealous. she gets all of your attention and I can't even get you to say more than two words to me anymore."

"We're talking now....that has to mean something."

"Maybe...But is it enough?"

"It is for me." Daniel scootched all the way over to Sam's side and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "I've missed being best friends too, Sam. I'm sorry you felt like I was ignoring you. I just didn't know how to go about talking about it to you."

"Me neither." She dropped her head on his shoulder and he squeezed tighter. It was then that the heavens opened up and rain began to fall on them in earnest. The wind picked up and whipped icy cold air through them.

"Ah!" Sam shrieked as it began to pour. Daniel grabbed Sam by the waist and helped her up.

"C'mon let's get back to camp!" As they ran, the wind gusted mightily, forcing them to fight against sheets of freezing rain all the way back, taking them almost an hour to reach the point where they could see the Stargate, the ruins and their stuff. Despite the supposed waterproof nature of their cold-weather field jackets, Daniel was soaked to the bone as sleet began to fall just as they reached the campsite. The fire had long since died, but what worried them most of all was that their tents had blown over and the rain had thoroughly soaked their sleeping bags and equipment.

"Grab the sleeping bags, let's get in the temple, it may not have a door, but at least it has four walls and a roof." Daniel yelled over the storm. Sam agreed, nodding and grabbing as much stuff as she could. He too picked up as much as he could hold and the two made their way to the temple. The were soaked from tip to toe, but both were relieved to be out of the harsh wind and rain as they crossed over the temple threshold.

They flung their soggy supplies down. Sam was shivering and her lips were turning a bluish tint. Daniel figured he looked much the same as he began to shake as well.

"We need to make a fire." Sam said through chattering teeth.

"No wood." Daniel pointed out. "I'll be right back." Daniel ran back out into the rain to the fire pit and gathered as much wood as he could hold. There was a good chance that all of it would be too wet to burn, but he had to try. His hands grew numb through his wet gloves as he gathered the rest of the wood and ran back to the temple as fast as he could.

Sam had already laid out the sleeping bags on the stone floor to dry and was digging through their supplies, looking for anything they could use for the fire when Daniel came back, dumping the wood to the floor and wrapping his arms tightly around himself. He couldn't recall ever being so cold before.

"Is there anything dry?" He asked.

"Well, the sleeping bag Mitchell left was still rolled up and was under one of the tents, so it's mostly just wet on the outside. The inside of it is mostly dry, but I'm afraid everything else is soaked."

"I guess we're still gonna need that fire then." Daniel groaned and shucked off his now useless gloves. He gathered a pile of sticks and worked with stiff and uncooperative hands to get a fire going. After several attempts with his lighter, no fire was achieved. The wood was too wet and would not catch fire. He would need something to start it off. Looking around he spotted his pack and zipped it open, pulling out his journal. Thankfully, it was still dry. He had filled half of it with his notes from the walls, but there were still several blank pages which he ripped out and stuffed under the wood. With any luck, the wood would burn as flames from the paper dried it. Thankfully, the paper stuffed under the sticks lit easily and a small blaze erupted. The fire was weak, but kept going and offered a minimum of amount heat to his frozen hands.

Sam took off her gloves as well and knelt down next to Daniel with her hands to the fire. She was shivering and looked just as miserable as Daniel felt.

"You should take off your wet clothes and get in Mitchell's sleeping bag." His teeth chattered so much, he could barely get the words out. "You're going to get hypothermia if you don't. I won't look...Scout's honor."

"What about you?" She asked, her lips shaking "You've got to be in just as much danger from hypothermia as me. We'd both be better off if we shared body heat."

"Sam...."

"C'mon Daniel, the longer we stay in these wet clothes the worse things are going to get for us." She set her jaw as stubbornly as she could as shivered some more before adding "I'm not getting in that sleeping bag without you."

"Fine." He relented, seeing that she wasn't going to get in by herself and watch him shake from the cold. "But we're keeping our underwear on, right?"

"Definitely." She agreed. Daniel crumpled up several more pieces of paper and put them into the fire before beginning to strip off his sodden layers of clothes hurriedly. He moved as fast as possible, not only due to the biting cold air but out of self consciousness, realizing how close he was to Sam with such little clothing between them. He was polite and did his best to not watch as Sam dropped her clothes to the floor and shook out her hair, but from the corner of his eye he caught a flash here and there of her nearly naked body as she entered the sleeping bag. He pushed any encroaching inappropriate thoughts out of his head as he crawled into the sleeping bag, side by side with Sam.

They both shivered and shook for several minutes as their bodies worked to heat them up. Laying on their sides, they were forced to spoon each other in the small space of the sleeping bag originally made for one person. Daniel had been quite uncomfortable being snuggled up so close to Sam at first, but as her body heat warmed him, he luxuriated in it, even to the point where he tentatively wrapped an arm around her in order to share more of his heat with her. When she didn't object, he breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"Who would have thought we'd be naked and sharing a sleeping bag together on Christmas eve, no less." Sam spoke up with a little laugh, the chattering in her teeth still present. Daniel chuckled too and hugged her a little tighter.

"Could be worse. You could be Mitchell. I'm not sure I'm ready for this kind of closeness with him just yet." Sam giggled and its sound warmed him nearly as much as her body.

"I'm not sure if I've had a Christmas quite this miserable before." Sam conceded.

"I've had worse."

"You've got to be kidding me."

"Nah, I went on a cultural exchange trip to Panama not long after I finished my doctorate in Anthropology. Of course, that would be the year that the US decided to invade and I ended up spending Christmas in the back of a barely running pick-up truck with my next-door neighbor's family hightailing it out of Panama city while the US Army tore through town looking for Noriega. I young and scared shit-less." He laughed a little. "Looking back on it now, it's kinda funny how frightened I was even though we were miles away from any of the action. Nowadays, it wouldn't even be a blip on the radar of my most frightening experiences, but at the time I really was afraid we were all going to be killed." He nudged her gently. "How about you? What's your worst Christmas story? not including this one of course."

Sam shifted, drawing herself just a tad closer to Daniel.

"Hmmm.....I never really talked about this, but I'd say it would definitely have to be the Christmas after my Mom died." She started sadly, speaking distantly from her memories. "I was fifteen and Dad was working so much he was almost never home. I know now that he was just trying to get away from the pain of losing mom, but the fact that he was almost never there was a huge source of conflict between Mark and my Dad. They fought all of the time and I felt like I was stuck in the middle of it all. Dad always relied on Mom to do the Christmas shopping and all of the decorating and festive stuff, so I think he just wasn't equipped to handle it all. By the time Christmas came, instead of presents under our tree, he gave us both a check and told us to take ourselves shopping because he had a trip he needed to take to Washington that afternoon. Mark lost it and he and Dad had the worst argument that I can remember. That was the night Mark left the house and moved in with his friend down the street. Dad left for Washington that afternoon and I spent the rest of Christmas alone in my room. Yeah, that was a pretty crappy Christmas."

Sam's voice drifted off. He could hear the tiredness in her voice, getting sleepy. The fire was going steadily now and while the roof of the temple was leaky and the rain and wind continued to pound and howl against the walls, their shelter was holding and they were finally warm. Giving in to the moment's comfort he found himself in, his eyes drooped. Sam's breathing deepened and he realized that she had fallen asleep as she softly began to snore. Giving in, he fell into a deep, dreamless and exhaustive sleep, enjoying the closeness of another human being that he hadn't felt in a very long time.

To be Continued.....


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: As always, I own no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters.

_My daughter was home from school today with a cold and I didn't have much else to do except write, so as an early Christmas gift I give you another chapter today, so you don't have to wait until tomorrow for it. I can be nice when I want to be. :)_

_***********_

**Chapter 5**

Sam woke up to the unmistakable sounds of.......singing?

"_Oh the weather outside is frightful, _

_but the fire is so delightful _

_and since we have no place to go, _

_let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!"_

She turned around in the small sleeping bag, still painfully aware of her and Daniel's state of undress, surprised to see him smiling as he hummed slightly out of tune.

"Sorry....That was bad, I know."

"Singing?....You, Daniel? I don't think I've ever heard you sing."

"Well, I do, on occasion. Just not very well, obviously."

She laughed. He had taken off his glasses and was smiling sweetly at her.

"I was just thinking that we've had some pretty shitty Christmases in the past." Daniel started to say. "That doesn't mean we have to let this one be terrible. We can still have some fun."

"What kind of fun did you have in mind?.......Wait, you weren't thinking of singing more Christmas carols were you?"

"Sure, why not? It's not like we have an audience around to judge us. It's just us. I won't tell anyone if you won't." She giggled and turned back around to face the fire.

"I'm not singing." She laughed as he poked her.

"C'mon.....

"No, Daniel." She chuckled playfully, elbowing him back.

"Saaaam...."

"Fine." She cleared her throat and began singing weakly and quietly, embarrassed by her lack of musical skills.

"_Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way._

_Oh what fun it is to ride_

_on a one horse open sleigh"_

"There, happy now?" She asked.

"Jingle bells? C'mon, you can do better than that."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Let's make this challenging. All of the carols we pick have to be something obscure or in another language."

"Oh a challenge...hmmm...I like that. Okay. Give me sec to think....." Sam picked at her brain until a song popped into her head. She smiled and started to sing again while trying to hold back her giggles, tentatively trying to remember all of the words.

"_Cascabeles, cascabeles, tra-la-la-la-la_

_Que alegria, toda al dia_

_y felicidad"_

Daniel laughed at her poorly pronounced Spanish rendition of _Jingle Bells_ that she recalled from Junior High school.

"Sorry. Not a linguist. Remember?" She pointed out. "Let's see you do better."

"Fine...let me think." She knew she was going to lose this game. Daniel probably knew more languages that anyone on Earth or in the Galaxy for that matter. He was sure to think of one that she hadn't heard before and she wouldn't know the difference, but when he began to sing in his best Jose Feliciano impression, she couldn't help but laugh.

"_Feliz Navidad. Feliz Navidad_

_Feliz navidad y prospero ano en felicidad."_

"Damn! Why didn't I think of that one?" She groused jokingly. "Okay, now that's not fair, you need a handicap for this challenge, you know too many languages to go stealing all of the easy songs from me. Think of something more foreign, something I wouldn't have heard before."

"Ahhhh, okay. Let's see here....Oh I got one...."

"_Zie ginds komt de stoomboot  
uit Spanje weer aan.  
Hij brengt ons Sint-Nicolaas  
Ik zie hem al staan.  
Hoe huppelt zijn paardje  
op het dek op en neer,  
hoe waaien de wimpels  
al heen en al weer._

_Zijn knecht staat te lachen  
en roept ons reeds toe:  
"Wie zoet is krijgt lekkers,  
wie stout is de roe!"  
Och lieve Sint Niklaas,  
kom ook eens bij mij,  
en rijd toch ons huisje  
niet stil voorbij."_

"That was sweet. What was that?" Sam asked. It was definitely one she hadn't heard before.

"It's called _Here comes Saint Nicholas_. It's a Dutch song. Children sing it when the steamboat comes in from Spain carrying Sinterklaas and his helper, Zwarte Piet."

"I'm guessing Sinterklaas is Santa, but who is Zwarte Piet?" She asked and Daniel laughed a little, embarrassed.

"It's a little politically incorrect, but Zwarte Piet is also known as Black Pete and they're usually little white boys or girls dressed up in colorful clothes and in blackface. Legends say that Black Pete was either a Moorish slave or perhaps was black because he would slide down the chimney for Sinterklaas and get dirty as he delivered the Christmas gifts."

"Ah...I can see how that's not too P.C. anymore."

"Yeah, and a little scary too."

"Scary?"

"Sorry....I was just thinking out loud." Daniel grew quiet in thought. Sam was curious to know what was going through his head.

"About what?"

"About the first time I celebrated Christmas."

"You remember that?"

"Sure. I was seven and I had grown up for the most part in Egypt, which is a Muslim country, so we never celebrated Christmas before then. That is, until my parents decided to take us on a trip to Amsterdam to visit my Grandfather before we moved to New York. They thought it would be a good cultural experience for me to see Sinterklaas arrive. But when he came and Black Pete jumped off the boat and started tossing little cookies at the kids, I was too scared to leave my parents' side and get some cookies too" Daniel laughed a little at the memory. "I was a little sensitive as a child and not knowing a whole lot about Christmas at the time; it was a little overwhelming."

"That's okay, Daniel. I've always been afraid of the Easter bunny." Sam confessed

"Easter bunny?" He laughed.

"Yeah, scary. Don't you think? I have always thought that a giant bunny rabbit is terrifying. Still do." They laughed together and Sam felt a fondness and a closeness with Daniel that she hadn't felt in so long. It was a nice feeling to have back. She turned around and looked him in his clear, blue eyes, their faces close enough for her to feel his breath. His smile evened out as she contemplated his handsome face. He had always been an attractive man, but Jack had occupied her thoughts for so long, she had never really noticed just how easy on the eyes he was until just now. She could be pretty unobservant, she mused.

"I just want you to know that I'm having a pretty good Christmas, despite everything." Sam let him know.

"Me too." He smiled wide and then suddenly surprised her by placing a soft kiss on her cheek. She wasn't sure what to make of that as his head came back up and he looked deep into her eyes. What was more surprising to her was her own reaction to the intimate contact. He had kissed her on the cheek before, what was the big deal now? Her heartbeat raced and she felt a little dizzy. They lay there staring at each other as moments passed, their lips close enough to touch, but neither one of them willing to make a move. Finally, Daniel broke the silence.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have....." She shut him up, crushing her mouth to his in a deep and passionate kiss, something she was totally taken aback to find herself doing. Her logical mind told her how wrong this all was, but she ignored those warnings from inside her head and let her feelings take over as he kissed her back. With a heat that caught her off-guard, their tongues slid past each other. What were they doing? She should really back off now, she thought. They were too close to ruining the friendship they had just fought so hard to win back. _You made this same mistake before with Jack_ her mind yelled at her, but she was too far gone to listen as she placed a hand behind his head to deepen the kiss. Growing bolder, she raised a leg over his hips and he responded by moving closer. She could feel his excitement growing and it should have been a sign for them to stop, but she was out of control. It felt as right as it felt wrong, but she just couldn't make herself end this and Daniel didn't seem to want to stop either.

"Jackson, Carter, come in." A voice called out across the radio, startling them both. Like teenagers that had been caught necking in the backseat of a car, they broke off, embarrassed even though no one could see them. Daniel turned away quickly, avoiding her eyes as she panted heavily, catching her breath first before turning and reaching out from the sleeping blanket for the radio beside her. What had she just done? She thought guiltily as Daniel looked away, deep in his thoughts. She brought the radio to her mouth to speak.

"Go ahead, Mitchell." She relayed as Daniel rose out of the sleeping bag and into the cold air. Reaching for his pants, even though they were still mostly wet and slipped into them, his breath visible as steam whenever he exhaled.

"Hey, guys. Sorry about the wait, but Felger thinks he should have everything fixed by tomorrow morning. Until then, I'm sorry, but you'll just have to wait it out a little longer. How are you guys holding out?" Sam looked at Daniel who was now fully dressed, but obviously very cold now as he tried to warm up beside the fire, putting another piece of wood on. He didn't look up to meet her gaze and she worried.

"We're fine."

"Good to hear. We'll contact you again soon. Mitchell out." The radio clicked off and Sam put it back down. She wanted nothing more than bury herself under the blanket and never come out again. However, she needed to face the music of what she had just started and what they had very nearly done. She cursed herself for letting this happen yet again with one of her friends. Didn't she learn her lesson the first time? She could be so foolish sometimes. She knew the house of cards they had built together over the last day had been shaky at best, but she had just gone and blown it all down. But this time, unlike what had happened with Jack, there was no where to run. She would have to face the consequences here and now.

To Be Continued.......


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: As always, I own no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters.

_Hey everybody! Thanks for all of the reviews so far. Y'all make writing this story so much fun and rewarding that I stayed up late to finish this chapter. Okay, maybe I stayed up late because of those three cups of coffee I had after dinner (not smart!), but anyway, you are now the beneficiaries of my caffeine addiction. Also, my daughter is much better and back in school today, so thanks again to everyone who sent her well wishes. She's still a little sniffly, but we all are around here right now. :) Anyhoo.... On with the Dan and Sam show!_

**************

**Chapter 6**

"Daniel?" Sam asked. He found it hard to make eye contact with her and kept his focus on the fire, trying to ignore the bitter cold and her worried stare. He hugged himself tight. The air felt as though it had dropped even further in temperature since they first ran into the temple for shelter and he was back to freezing.

"Sam, what just happened?" He finally spoke sitting on the cold, stone floor, keeping his face to the flames.

"I'm sorry.....I didn't mean to..."

"No, it's my fault. I kissed you first, remember."

"On the cheek, yes. But I took it too far, Daniel." She shook her head in remorse. "And I shouldn't have.... I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

"What does this mean for us?" He asked.

"I don't know....." She answered sadly.

"Well, we better figure it out before we have to go back."

"You're right, we should...." She agreed softly, nodding before looking over to him with concern. "You've got to be freezing. Come back to the blanket." Daniel shook his head even though he was shivering.

"I don't think that's such a good idea, Sam." He wasn't sure he could trust himself to be so close to her again. She was a friend for God's sake, yet all he could seem to think about was how warm and soft her skin had been against his and how marvelously magical that kiss had been. He wanted nothing more than to do as she asked. But if he got under that blanket again with her, he might not be able to control his urges.

He wasn't even sure where these feelings had come from, but then again he knew exactly where they came from. While he had to admit that years ago he had an unrequited crush on Sam for a long time after he returned from Vis Uban and his ascension, he had always believed that he just felt that way because of his confusion before his memories returned. He remembered that depite his total amnesia, how he felt drawn to her the first time he saw her in that tent. Her presence had felt so right to him that he knew he was meant to be with the people that had shown up in his adopted village and claimed to be his friends. But, she never showed any interest in him sexually, so he put those feelings away and never expected them to resurface like they had now.

Then again, she never really had much of a chance to really notice him in that way. She had been so preoccupied with Jack for so long that he had come to accept the fact that he would never be anything more than a friend to her; that she wasn't attracted to sensative, geeky guys like him. He wasn't a macho kind of man like the men Sam seemed to be attracted to. He always figured she liked the guys that ran head-first into danger and those that shot first and asked questions later like Jack or Pete. But now that he knew that things hadn't ended so well between Jack and Sam and she had just kissed him unlike any woman had ever kissed him before, he wasn't so sure how she felt about him. But he did know one thing, those feelings he had supressed long ago, were back with a vengence and he was as confused as hell.

Sam crawled out of the blanket and reached for her shirt; it too was still wet. Daniel turned away, not wanting to watch her dress.

"You should stay in the sleeping bag, Sam."

"Not if you're not. I'm not going to watch you shiver and turn into a popsicle while I stay warm and dry. No, if you're going to be miserable." She pulled on her wet pants. "Then we'll both be miserable." Determinedly she walked over to him and the fire. She was already shivering by the time she sat next to him.

"Let's talk about this." She suggested, hugging herself tightly, trying to stay warm. Even though they were by the fire, it did little to warm much more than their hands and fronts, leaving their backs exposed and with their clothes still damp, there was little they could do heat up

"Maybe we should just forget it ever happened." She started. Daniel snapped his head towards her, his eyes blazing.

"Yeah, sure let's do that. By all means, let's just forget this ever happened." Daniel began sarcastically, gesturing wildly with his hands, suddenly angry. "It worked pretty well for you and Jack didn't it? So well in fact, that you left the SGC and Jack went to Washington. So, what will happen this time I wonder? You request another transfer?" Daniel continued his rant, he noticed she had closed her eyes as tears slipped down her face, but he kept going. He was growing too wound-up to stop. "Where to this time, Sam? Where will be far enough for you to go so we don't have to be reminded of this horrible, horrible mistake we just made? The Tokra? The Jaffa even?"

"Stop it!" She yelled with a sudden ferocity.

"Why should I? I don't think I can just sweep this under a rug like you an Jack apparently did!" Sam was burying her face in her hands now, her shoulders shaking in quiet sobs. Daniel's heart began to crumble. Sam was not a woman that cried easily, it took a lot to make her break down and he had just reduced her to the most gut-wrenching tears he had ever seen her shed. What a mess this turned out to be and what an ass he felt like.

"Sam....." He he wrapped his arm around her quaking shoulders "I'm sorry.....I didn't mean to get so unhinged."

"No, I'm the one that's sorry, Daniel." She sniffed and shivered, her teeth beginning to chatter again. Without thought, he rubbed his hand over her back to warm her.

"I shouldn't have thrown the whole Jack thing in your face." He apologized.

"It's the truth, Daniel. I took off because I just wasn't comfortable around him and I was embarrassed. but, I should have stayed and faced it. I shouldn't have left you and the team behind. I took the easy way out back then, but I don't plan on doing that this time."

"Good. We need you with us....I need you to stay."

"But can we even still be friends after this?" Sam asked in all seriousness. "It's bound to be....awkward...when we get back."

Daniel's stomach did a flip flop and it all hit him like a hammer. That word. Friends? Does he still want to be her friend? He stood up and walked away from her before turning around to face her again. He had to choose his next words carefully. This might sting at first, but he had to get this out, all of it. Right now. Like taking off a band-aid, it was easier to do it with one quick yank rather than a slow, painful pull.

"I don't think I want to be your friend anymore."

OOOOO

Sam's stomach hit the floor and she gave him a heartbreaking look She hadn't been prepared for those words. She had expected him to tell her that yes, they could still be friends. They had a history that went too far back for them to throw away. Tears came easily to her eyes again spilling freely down her cheeks.

He knelt down in front of her, inches from her face.

"Daniel...." She couldn't think of anything other than how devastated she was. She just wanted to go back in time and fix this. She never would have kissed him if it meant they couldn't at least be friends. She had messed things up so royally and now it was all over for them.

He put his hands on her shoulders. She turned away, not wanting to make eye contact. It would be too much for her to see the rejection in his face.

"Look at me, Sam" He cupped her face and she forced herself to look to him. His serious and apologetic gaze focused solely on her eyes.

"I'm sorry....I didn't mean for that to come out so harsh......I don't want to be your friend because..... I think I want to be more... Much more than I probably should."

Surprised, she looked through tear filled eyes into the blurry face before her. Her lips quivered as much from as the relief that washed over her and the onslaught of confusing emotions as the freezing air.

"I'll be honest," Daniel continued. " I had some feelings for you a few years ago, but I could never have acted on them. Not when I thought you and Jack had a thing for each other, so I put those feelings aside and moved on. But that kiss....God, that kiss....It's brought all of that back to me a thousand fold and I want more. I want to be more than just your friend. But I need to know first. How do you feel about me? Be honest. Don't mess around with the truth to spare my feelings. If you were just kissing me on impulse, just tell me. If you don't feel anything more for me other than a friend, I'll understand. I won't like it much, but I'll get over it ....eventually..... But if you do feel something more for me, I need to know now. We're too old to play these games anymore, I just don't have the stomach for it."

How did she feel? Looking back on the last few months since she returned from Atlantis, all of the times she saw Daniel with Vala sprang to mind; Vala hanging out with him in his office, those two eating meals together, working closel and the snarky, yet comfortable relationship that had grown since Sam left for Atlantis. Most of all, she thought of the empty, hopeless feeling that sat unsettled in the pit of her stomach whenever they were together around her.

It was jealousy, yes. But it was more than that too. It ran much deeper than she had ever cared to admit to herself. She wanted what Vala had with Daniel, but she wanted more than that too. She had simply ignored those feelings and pushed them aside for so long, never acknowledging them because she had always assumed that Daniel had feelings for Vala. However, she had been too cowardly to talk to him about it; too afraid that he would tell her that it was true. So instead, she gave him a wide berth and as a result that gulf between them had grown. What a fool she had been! She had almost lost him.

But here he was now, touching her face tenderly and reaching into the depths of her soul with those intelligent and caring eyes that conveyed a true sense of love and passion directed towards her alone. A face full of love that he had never seen him give Vala. Her heart felt like it would burst out of her chest as it pounded, the blood pulsing madly in her ears, making them ring.

He waited patiently for her answer and she gave him one. One which needed no words or translations and would be instantly understood. Leaning in close, she met her lips to his, pressing into a deep and longing kiss, relaying the truth of her soul to him, sharing the love that she now could freely express through their touch. She gave herself over, fully allowing herself to feel his love and return it wholeheartedly.

To Be Continued..........


	7. Chapter 7MATURE VERSION

Disclaimer: As always, I own no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters.

**_*****Important Author Note***** Okay, I need to offer a little explanation here. I've written two different versions of this next chapter. The first is very racy and goes further into sexual details than I have ever written before. So if you are underage or aren't interested in reading anything over a 'T' rating, then please go to the next chapter, it will be the same as this chapter, only tamer._**

***************

**WARNING- MATURE VERSION**

**Chapter 7**

Daniel smiled as he and Sam's lips broke apart, their foreheads connected, faces close as he studied her features, taking in her flushed delicate cheekbones, soft red lips and long golden hair. He was certain that this all couldn't be happening, that it was all a dream and he would wake up at any moment and return to reality. It was just too surreal. It was wonderful, but unreal at the same time. He never imagined that he would ever be kissing Sam like this and that she would feel any kind of feelings for him in return.

She smiled back at him, bringing a warmth to her eyes that belied the fact that they were both currently shivering and cold.

"Do you see any reason why we should be freezing our asses off right now?" He asked. And she laughed as her teeth chattered, shaking her head.

"Nope. I guess I'll just have to get those wet clothes off of you." She insisted, already unzipping his coat and peeling it off

"You too." They worked quickly to strip off their cold, wet clothes and clamber back into the sleeping bag; this time leaving the underwear behind. Facing each other, Daniel let his hands take over to wander and explore her body as they kissed and nipped at each other, slipping them over her smooth skin and into places than left her groaning into his ears. She in kind possessed him, draping a leg over him as though she feared he might escape. Their passion sparked a blaze, their bodies now well past warm, burning with a flaming desire that could not be doused even if they tried.

Sam rolled on top of him and he took advantage of her position, feeding on her breasts as she arched her neck back in pleasure, a soft moan escaping from the back of her throat. She moved her hips to straddle him completely, gyrating to a rhythm all their own. His own hips caught the beat, hardening his rising flesh. Daniel could hold back no further as she ground into his pelvis. He flipped her over to cover her completely, thrusting deep inside, both of them releasing a gasp of pleasure. She bit her lip, stifling her moans until he brought his mouth own down to envelope her lips, traveling further down to the side of her neck and tracing his kisses along her jaw before nibbling her ears, causing her to quiver uncontrollably.

He could feel his peak coming on quickly, he wanted this to go on forever and he tried to slow down, but Sam would have none of it, encircling her legs around his hips completely and holding on tightly. Blood roared through his body as his heart pounded as he picked up speed, unable to control the inevitable. Sam's cries of ecstasy climbed with his own, their voices mingling in a series of moans and sighs that escalated faster and faster, growing more intense with each passing heartbeat.

The harder he pressed into the heat of her depths the more she thrust back against him, not wanting to let him out of her grasp. Shaking, Sam called out, her chest flushing a bright red. Spurred on by her cries and the pulsations emanating from her, Daniel let go as well, shattering his consciousness until he lay panting on top of her, both of them gasping for oxygen. Kissing each other tenderly and lovingly they basked in each others heat.

Nearly spent, but aglow from their shared experience, Daniel rolled to his back and Sam rested over top of him, pulling up the top of the sleeping blanket that had fallen away and around their shoulders once again. Warm and secure, Daniel held Sam tight, his hand absently stroking her hair. As his heartbeat slowed down, he planted a long kiss onto the top of her head and whispered.

"I think I love you, Sam." She looked up into his eyes before landing a tender kiss onto his lips.

"I think I love you, too." Laying her head back down, a warm smile spread across her features. Released from their mutual desire, at least for the moment, they lay exhausted and content, both of them slipping into a deep and luxurious sleep.

**December 25th **

Sam woke not knowing how long she had been asleep, but Daniel was dressed and out of the sleeping bag, stoking the fire.

She stretched and yawned. Daniel looked her way and smiled before getting up and moving over to her, placing a tender and long-lasting kiss against her lips.

"Morning...Merry Christmas, sleepy head" He greeted cheerfully after they disengaged.

"Morning already?" She asked.

"Yeah. Mitchell called while you were asleep. Felger is close to getting the iris open, so we should be ready to go at anytime."

Sam was actually a little disappointed in hearing that. Sure, she wanted to get back to the SGC where there were hot showers, warm clothes and a soft bed, but after last night's turn of events, she didn't want to go back just yet, wanting instead to stay a little longer with Daniel. Sam took note of how quiet it was. The rain had stopped and the wind was no longer howling against the walls of the temple.

"Oh, our clothes are dry." He reached over and gathered her clothing for her.

"Thanks." She said as she dressed quickly, wasting no time being exposed to the cold air. The rain may have stopped, but it was still quite chilly. Once fully clothed, Daniel took her hand and led her to the entrance.

"C'mon, you gotta take a look at this." He pulled her to the entrance. The sun was out and it was incredibly bright, almost blinding. She squinted, but smiled at the sight.

"Pretty, huh?"

"Oh, it is nice.....cold, but nice." As far as she could see a fresh, white powdering of snow covered everything. It must have started when the rain ended last night and it continued to fall silently in larges, fluffy flakes. Rain from the previous day had turned to ice and long icicles hung over their head at the entrance and on the tall shoots of grass peeking out from under the snow, making the scene look much like what one might expect from a Christmas greeting card..

"Guess we'll have a white Christmas." Daniel pointed out.

"We would have had one in Colorado too. Besides, I thought you didn't like snow. You always complain about it back home."

"Yeah, but this snow is different that the stuff back home. This is untouched, pristine even. It hasn't been plowed into piles, peed on by dogs or run over and turned into slush by cars. In a word....it's beautiful." Sam looked off into it as Daniel put an arm around her. A sudden

"We should go play in it."

"What? I just thought it was pretty....I didn't....Sam..." Sam was already running out into it and balling up a handful of snow. Daniel ducked as a snowball went flying towards his head and hit the side of the temple where his head had been.

"Okay, It's war now!" Daniel exclaimed, running out of the temple and taking cover around the corner of the building and making a snowball for himself, he launched the cold projectile in Sam's direction. She yelped as she turned just in time for it fly past her. It didn't take long for the two scientists to be tossing volleys of snow in rapid succession at each other, both of them growing breathless, not just from the physical exertion, but from the laughter neither one could contain.

Daniel quickly made another snowball and threw it towards Sam, but this time she wasn't quite fast enough to avoid it and it hit her squarely in the face, knocking her down to the ground. She moaned as she lay in the snow and he immediately felt terribly guilty, worried that he may have injured her inadvertently.

"I'm so sorry, You okay?" He asked, running to her side as she continued to wallow on the ground. It was then that a flying handful of snow hit him playfully in the face and she lay on the ground in a fit of giggles, laughing at how the snow completely covered his glasses, clinging to them in little clumps before sliding off to the ground.

"Good one. I should have known better, you fink!" He laughed, taking off his glasses and wiping the snow off with his sleeve. She took his hand as he offered it to help her up.

"Truce?" He asked.

"Never surrender!" She pulled on his hand and sent him sprawling to snow next to her. Laughing and panting as they both lay on the ground, Sam wiped away the tears that came to her eyes as a result of their game. She hadn't felt this bubbly in quite some time. She couldn't recall the last time she had laughed this hard. It was more than just fun, it was rejuvenating and she couldn't get enough if it.

"Okay....Now we're even." He stated.

"Alright" she agreed .

"It's getting cold down here." He started to get up, but she pulled him back down.

"Wait!" She exclaimed "Snow angels!"

Daniel groaned. He obviously wasn't enjoying this romp in the snow as much as she was.

"C'mon" She insisted and was already spreading out her arms and legs. "It'll be fun." flapping her arms up and down and moving her legs together and out again she lay in the snow, creating the wings and dress of her angel..

"Fine." He relented and mimicked her actions. After a few moments, both sat up to look at their creations. Two angels, side by side in the snow. Daniel stood and shook off the snow and helped her up, brushing the snow off her back.

"Okay, maybe that was a little fun." He admitted and grinned widely, grabbing her by the waist, drawing her in close and kissing her as soon as she was within reach of his lips. Afterwards, Daniel broke off and reached into his pocket.

"This reminds me..." He stated and withdrew a small object crudely wrapped in some of the papers from his journal. "I have a little something for you. I just couldn't let Christmas morning go by without you getting a It's not really anything special and I have a real present back home for you. I just made it because.....it makes me think of you. You're my angel."

Sam took the gift from Daniel and removed the wrapping, discovering the small, carved object underneath. The little figurine was a small angel, it's wings whittled from a point where two small branches had grown out close to each other from the main branch. It was roughly carved, its head was a mere ball on top of a conical body and its wings were very small, but it was beautiful in its simplicity.

"It's lovely, Daniel....thank-you. But, I don't have anything to give you."

"I'll take a kiss..." Sam obliged and pulled Daniel towards her and they enveloped each other, letting the flakes of snow fall around them as if they were trapped in some kind of snow globe. Time flew by as well as all senses beyond the touch and feel of each other and neither one of them saw anything nor heard anything, too engrossed in their affectations to care.

Perhaps that's why the sound of a throat clearing behind them was such a shock. Catching them off guard, both turning to the source and groaning guiltily. Mitchell stood not ten feet away addressing them with a very pissed looking Vala standing by his side, her hands on her hips and head cocked to the side.

"Someone mind telling me what the hell is going on?"


	8. Chapter 7 TEEN VERSION

Disclaimer: Stargate SG1 and its characters are in no way shape or form owned by me.

********TEEN VERSION*******

**Chapter 7**

Daniel smiled as he and Sam's lips broke apart, their foreheads connected, faces close as he studied her features, taking in her flushed delicate cheekbones, soft red lips and long golden hair. He was certain that this all couldn't be happening, that it was all a dream and he would wake up at any moment and return to reality. It was just too surreal. It was wonderful, but unreal at the same time. He never imagined that he would ever be kissing Sam like this and that she would feel any kind of feelings for him in return.

She smiled back at him, bringing a warmth to her eyes that belied the fact that they were both currently shivering and cold.

"Do you see any reason why we should be freezing our asses off right now?" He asked. And she laughed as her teeth chattered, shaking her head.

"Nope. I guess I'll just have to get those wet clothes off of you." She insisted, already unzipping his coat and peeling it off

"You too." They worked quickly to strip off their cold, wet clothes and clamber back into the sleeping bag; this time leaving the underwear behind. Facing each other, Daniel let his hands take over to wander and explore her body as they kissed and nipped at each other, slipping them over her smooth skin and into places than left her groaning into his ears. She in kind possessed him, draping a leg over him as though she feared he might escape. Their passion sparked a blaze, their bodies now well past warm, burning with a flaming desire that could not be doused even if they tried.

Long into the night they made love with a passion and ferocity that neither had known before, finding a depth and height in pleasure that was unequal to any in their memories.

Hours later, spent but aglow from their shared experience, Daniel rolled to his back and Sam rested over top of him, pulling up the top of the sleeping blanket that had fallen away and around their shoulders once again. Warm and secure, Daniel held Sam tight, his hand absently stroking her hair. As his heartbeat slowed down, he planted a long kiss onto the top of her head and whispered.

"I think I love you, Sam." She looked up into his eyes before landing a tender kiss onto his lips.

"I think I love you, too." Laying her head back down, a warm smile spread across her features. Released from their mutual desire, at least for the moment, they lay exhausted and content, both of them slipping into a deep and luxurious sleep.

**December 25th **

Sam woke not knowing how long she had been asleep, but Daniel was dressed and out of the sleeping bag, stoking the fire.

She stretched and yawned. Daniel looked her way and smiled before getting up and moving over to her, placing a tender and long-lasting kiss against her lips.

"Morning...Merry Christmas, sleepy head" He greeted cheerfully after they disengaged.

"Morning already?" She asked.

"Yeah. Mitchell called while you were asleep. Felger is close to getting the iris open, so we should be ready to go at anytime."

Sam was actually a little disappointed in hearing that. Sure, she wanted to get back to the SGC where there were hot showers, warm clothes and a soft bed, but after last night's turn of events, she didn't want to go back just yet, wanting instead to stay a little longer with Daniel. Sam took note of how quiet it was. The rain had stopped and the wind was no longer howling against the walls of the temple.

"Oh, our clothes are dry." He reached over and gathered her clothing for her.

"Thanks." She said as she dressed quickly, wasting no time being exposed to the cold air. The rain may have stopped, but it was still quite chilly. Once fully clothed, Daniel took her hand and led her to the entrance.

"C'mon, you gotta take a look at this." He pulled her to the entrance. The sun was out and it was incredibly bright, almost blinding. She squinted, but smiled at the sight.

"Pretty, huh?"

"Oh, it is nice.....cold, but nice." As far as she could see a fresh, white powdering of snow covered everything. It must have started when the rain ended last night and it continued to fall silently in larges, fluffy flakes. Rain from the previous day had turned to ice and long icicles hung over their head at the entrance and on the tall shoots of grass peeking out from under the snow, making the scene look much like what one might expect from a Christmas greeting card..

"Guess we'll have a white Christmas." Daniel pointed out.

"We would have had one in Colorado too. Besides, I thought you didn't like snow. You always complain about it back home."

"Yeah, but this snow is different that the stuff back home. This is untouched, pristine even. It hasn't been plowed into piles, peed on by dogs or run over and turned into slush by cars. In a word....it's beautiful." Sam looked off into it as Daniel put an arm around her. A sudden

"We should go play in it."

"What? I just thought it was pretty....I didn't....Sam..." Sam was already running out into it and balling up a handful of snow. Daniel ducked as a snowball went flying towards his head and hit the side of the temple where his head had been.

"Okay, It's war now!" Daniel exclaimed, running out of the temple and taking cover around the corner of the building and making a snowball for himself, he launched the cold projectile in Sam's direction. She yelped as she turned just in time for it fly past her. It didn't take long for the two scientists to be tossing volleys of snow in rapid succession at each other, both of them growing breathless, not just from the physical exertion, but from the laughter neither one could contain.

Daniel quickly made another snowball and threw it towards Sam, but this time she wasn't quite fast enough to avoid it and it hit her squarely in the face, knocking her down to the ground. She moaned as she lay in the snow and he immediately felt terribly guilty, worried that he may have injured her inadvertently.

"I'm so sorry, You okay?" He asked, running to her side as she continued to wallow on the ground. It was then that a flying handful of snow hit him playfully in the face and she lay on the ground in a fit of giggles seeing how the snow had completely covered his glasses, clinging to them before little clumps began to fall from them.

"Good one. I should have known better, you fink!" He laughed, taking off his glasses and wiping the snow off with his sleeve. She took his hand as he offered it to help her up.

"Truce?" He asked.

"Never!" She pulled on his hand and send him sprawling to snow next to her. Laughing and panting as they both lay on the ground, Sam wiped away the tears that came to her eyes as a result of their game. She hadn't felt this bubbly in quite some time. She couldn't recall the last time she had laughed this hard. It was more than just fun, it was rejuvenating and she couldn't get enough if it.

"Okay....Now we're even." He stated.

"Alright" she agreed .

"It's getting cold down here." He started to get up, but she pulled him back down.

"Wait!" She exclaimed "Snow angels!"

Daniel groaned. He obviously wasn't enjoying this romp in the snow as much as she was.

"C'mon" She insisted and was already spreading out her arms and legs. "It'll be fun." flapping her arms up and down and moving her legs together and out again she lay in the snow, creating the wings and dress of her angel..

"Fine." He relented and mimicked her actions. After a few moments, both sat up to look at their creations. Two angels, side by side in the snow. Daniel stood and shook off the snow and helped her up, brushing the snow off her back.

"Okay, maybe that was a little fun." He admitted and grinned widely, grabbing her by the waist, drawing her in close and kissing her as soon as she was within reach of his lips. Afterwards, Daniel broke off and reached into his pocket.

"This reminds me..." He stated and withdrew a small object crudely wrapped in some of the papers from his journal. "I have a little something for you. I just couldn't let Christmas morning go by without you getting a It's not really anything special and I have a real present back home for you. I just made it because.....it makes me think of you. You're my angel."

Sam took the gift from Daniel and removed the wrapping, discovering the small, carved object underneath. The little figurine was a small angel, it's wings whittled from a point where two small branches had grown out close to each other from the main branch. It was roughly carved, its head was a mere ball on top of a conical body and its wings were very small, but it was beautiful in its simplicity.

"It's lovely, Daniel....thank-you. But, I don't have anything to give you."

"I'll take a kiss..." Sam obliged and pulled Daniel towards her and they enveloped each other, letting the flakes of snow fall around them as if they were trapped in some kind of snow globe. Time flew by as well as well all senses beyond the touch and feel of each other and neither one of them saw anything nor heard anything, too engrossed in their affectations to care.

Perhaps that's why the sound of a throat clearing behind them was such a shock. Catching them off guard, both turning to the source and groaning guiltily. Mitchell stood not ten feet away addressing them with a very pissed looking Vala standing by his side, her hands on her hips and head cocked to the side.

"Someone mind telling me what the hell is going on?"


	9. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: As always, I own no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters.

_Thanks for all of the feedback so far, I love hearing from you all._

**Chapter 8**

"Jackson? Sam?" Mitchell asked after it seemed like neither one of them could do anything, but stare at them with eyes the size of saucers.

"Well....uh, we were..." Sam started, but couldn't finish.

"We were just......" Daniel began to gesture defensively, looking to Sam for help, but not recieving any. He could come up with nothing to say that would explain what they were doing beyond the obvious. So he decided to change the subject, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Couldn't you have called first?"

"We did. You didn't answer, so we worried that something might have happened to you. But I guess you two are fine. Really, really....really fine." Mitchell did little to withhold his mirth in catching them in the act, while Vala did little to hold back her contempt.

For many uncomfortable seconds the team stood looking at each other until Mitchell finally broke the silence with a clap of his hands.

"Okay gang, let's just pick up everything and get home. We'll uh.....talk later."

OOOOO

"Well, this is certainly a turn of events I was not expecting." Vala started as she and Daniel entered the Temple to retrieve their supplies. He went to the fire and doused it before going to the sleeping bag and rolling it up.

"One sleeping bag?" Vala asked with raised eyebrows knowingly. A hint of hurt hidden behind her grey eyes. "Very clever, Daniel. So, while I was home puking my guts up for 24 straight hours you and Sam are over here rolling around in your 'love den'...." She waved her hand around the temple.

"Vala..." He cut her off. He wasn't ready to talk about this with her, but he had a feeling that she was.

"So, let me guess. It was cold out and in order to conserve heat, you snuggled together and then you took advantage of the situation. Am I close?" She asked bitterly. Daniel didn't respond, only sighing in frustration "It's all very clichéd, don't you think?"

"Vala....We'll talk about this later, okay? Why don't we just get everything packed up so we can go home."

"No, Daniel. Let's talk about this right now." She stood defiantly, her arms crossed.

"No, Vala."

"Why not? You're the one who always tells me how teammates should never be romantically involved. That's been your excuse ever since I joined the SGC. Now suddenly that has changed?" Vala voice hitched up notch and rose several decibels. "And yet, here you are with Sam, left on your own for a couple of days and you just can't keep your hands off each other!" She grew angrier with each word spoken.

"Vala! enough!"

She turned away from him, showing him her back. "You are such a hypocrite!" Daniel stood and walked over to her spinning her around to face him, grasping her arms.

"Have I ever, ever, given you any indication that I wanted to be anything more than just your friend and teammate? I think I've been pretty clear in how I feel."

"Have you, Daniel? I thought you were pretty clear about how you felt about Sam, but apparently I was wrong. I'm not sure what to think about how you feel anymore."

"I'm really sorry. Believe me, I never wanted to hurt you like this...."

"I don't want to hear about how sorry you are." She spat out.

Whipping her pigtails around, she stalked out of the temple at a run, leaving him standing there feeling very much like the hypocrite she accused him of being.

OOOOOO

"Wow, I did not see this one coming." Mitchell stated as he and Sam dug out the useless tents from under the snow while Vala and Daniel headed for the temple to gather the supplies. "I never figured that you and Jackson had any sort of feelings for each other."

"We've known each other for a long time, Cam. "

"I know, it's just a little hard to picture you two together."

"I know."

"I'm going to have to talk to Landry about this...." Cam started. Sam stood up, looking defeated.

"I know."

"Look, I'm cool with this as long as it doesn't interfere with work. I'll put a good word in, but there are many others who won't feel the same way, especially the IOA and the higher-ups."

"I know that, too." She gave him a weak smile, grateful to at least have his support.

"Listen....It's Christmas and Landry's not even in town, so I can't talk to him about this today anyway. But we can't leave things as awkward as they are right now. How about after we get back, we all go to my place, have some dinner and a Pow-wow. We'll talk about this together as a team and get it all out. Teal'c should be back tonight, he's going to want in on this too."

Sam nodded, shaking snow out of the tent in her hands before folding it up. He was right. They couldn't let things stay like this for too long. They were going to need to talk about this and the sooner the better. That's when they spied Vala running out of the temple.

"Ah, great...." Cam sighed in a sarcastic tone. "Looks like Jackson's been working his charms on Vala. I'll go talk to her while you finish up here."

"Good idea. She probably doesn't want to talk to me just yet." Sam added, knowing that Vala was most likely just as pissed at her as she was at Daniel. Mitchell gave Sam a little reassuring grin before he ran after Vala.

OOOOOO

"Vala, stop!" Cam called out.

"Leave me alone, Mitchell." She yelled back without turning around, continuing her stomp off to nowhere. At least she had stopped running, but her quick pace caused Cam to jog in order to catch up with her. He grabbed her by the arm and brought her to a halt in front of him. She sighed angrily, but did not protest any further.

"Hey. What's going on?" He asked. She was crying, tears flooding out of her eyes in a way he had never imagined her being able to do before. He was going to have a strongly worded talk with Jackson after they got back.

"What do you think?" She sniffed. He reached into his pocket and found a small pack of tissues, handing one to her. She blew her nose loudly, nodding her thanks, giving him back the tissure.

"Uh, You can keep that."He made a face and she shrugged. He knew she was upset that Daniel and Sam had apparently taken their relationship to a whole new level. She had to be feeling pretty rejected, especially since she made it no secret that she had a thing for the archaeologist. Of course, Daniel had never reciprocated those feelings, but seeing him with Sam had to have been a blow not only to her ego, but to her hope that maybe one day she could wear him down enough to have him return those affections.

"Ya know, I've had my share of unrequited loves before. I know it sucks, but I also know that the idea of being in love with someone is usually not as good as the reality. It doesn't help much, but for what it's worth. I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?"

"I was the one that decided they could stay behind. Chances are they never would have said anything to each other and things would be exactly as they were two days ago. You would still be pining hopelessly after Jackson, possibly waiting forever for him to come around, Sam would still be miserably lonely, perhaps thinking about getting some cats and I wouldn't be freezing my tookis off on an alien world, but having egg nog with my parents......Anyway, my Grandmother always said that things happen for a reason. Maybe this all came about because you needed to see that maybe, just maybe Daniel isn't 'the one' for you. That perhaps Mr. Right is still out there somewhere for you."

"You think I've been foolish thinking that Daniel would want anything to do with me."

"No, in fact, as guy I can tell you that he's had a hard time resisting you, I can tell. But what do you think would have happened if he had given into your advances?"

"We would have had great sex?"

"Yeah, sure. But what about afterwards?"

"What do you mean?"

"Listen. I know Jackson, then he's not the kind of guy that goes sleeping around, if you know what I mean. Teal'c told me that he hasn't been with a woman since his wife died and that was like seven years ago. So if something did happen between him and Sam, it's because he's crazy in love with her. Plus, he's definitely the kind of guy who's looking for a commitment, probably even marriage. Now I ask you, would you have settled down if he had asked you to?"

"Hmmm. I don't know......maybe?" Vala shrugged, looking sheepish and took a moment to reflect. "To be honest, I never really thought any further than getting him into bed. One step at a time, you know."

"Yeah, just think of it; all that marriage entails. Mini-vans, children and you can forget about designer clothes shopping once those kids arrive. With college costing as much as it does these days...You'll most likely have to buy all of your clothes and shoes at Wal-Mart."

She gasped in genuine horror. "Oh dear God, no."

Cam couldn't help but laugh at her reaction to that. She sighed in defeat. "I suppose you have a point."

"See? What'd I tell ya....the reality is never as pretty as the fantasy." She gave him a little smile and he gave her a squeeze around the shoulder. "C'mon, let's go back. It's time for us to go home."

To Be Continued.........


	10. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: As always, I own no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters.

_Alright, I've been hemming and hawing over this chapter for the last two days, never quite satisfied with it, but I hope you enjoy it. Please, let me know what you think, whether it's junk or not. :)_

**Chapter 9**

Things were strained and the air was filled with tension as Sam and Daniel sat in a sofa across from the loveseat that held Cam and Vala. A roaring fire Cam started in his fireplace burned brightly off to their side and his Christmas tree in the corner of the room was lit up with blinking lights, casting a festive glow that failed to match the atmosphere of hard feelings. Cam was beginning to think that getting everyone together to work out their feelings was going to be a marathon effort.

They ate dinner, which was no more than a pizza takeout from the only place open in town on Christmas night, with very little conversation. Vala picked at her toppings, not really eating, just staring into her paper plate. Every once in a while she would look up and shoot a glare towards Sam and Daniel and both of them knew that she was still royally upset and hurt, so they kept any touching between the two of them to a minimum.

Cam checked his watch for the tenth time. Where was Teal'c? He called over an hour ago to say he was on his way. He should have been there by now, then they could finally get started on what they really needed to do; talk to each other.

The silence was deafening and he could barely stand it. Getting SG1 back together had been the highlight of his career, but if things continued to be this way, he couldn't see the team lasting very long. He couldn't let that happen. He would do just about anything if it could to keep his 'band' together. He already made up his mind to ask Landry for a special dispensation for Sam and Daniel, but Vala was still an issue. He thought he had gotten through to her earlier on the planet, but her emotions were stilling running high and seeing the way she was acting tonight, he knew he had his work cut out for him.

Unable to take another second of the quiet, Mitchell cleared his throat and addressed everyone as he stood.

"Anyone want a drink? I've got beer."

"Uh, sure I'll take one." Sam said.

"Me too." Daniel added, though he wasn't much of a beer fanatic.

"Got anything stronger?" Vala asked.

"I do have a bottle of Irish cream I was going to give to my Uncle Ray, but seeing as how I'm going to miss him this year, I suppose I can share some with you, my dear."

He headed for the kitchen and grabbed the beers from the fridge and poured a glass of Irish cream for Vala. After passing out the drinks, Cam took a pull from his beer bottle while Vala downed her drink like a shot, making a face at it's milky texture. Sam sipped at her beer, but Daniel chug-a-lugged, nearly gagging on the taste, hoping the alcohol would help dull his senses some. After a few more minutes, the quiet was broken by a knock at the front door. Cam sighed in relief.

"Oh, good. That better be Teal'c" He hopped over to the door and opened it, allowing the large Jaffa to enter.

"Hey. Teal'c! Glad you made it."

"Good Christmas to you, ColonelMitchell." Teal'c bowed.

"Merry Christmas to you too, how's the family?" Teal'c entered, shaking snow from his shoulders.

"They are most well, thank-you. I must apologize for my tardiness, I was delayed by road conditions. I am afraid that driving has become quite treacherous. I would recommend that no one travel any further under these conditions. However, I have brought pie." Teal'c held up a bag and handed it to Mitchell

"Thanks, big guy." Mitchell opened the pastry box and smiled before walking and talking on his way to the kitchen to put it in the fridge. "Yeah, it was getting pretty bad earlier. Guess that means you're all stuck here tonight." Cam called back to the others. Sam and Daniel exchanged looks while Vala huffed. Teal'c walked in to the living area, removing his coat and hat , making a note of the distinct lack of joviality emanating from his teammates this Christmas night. He took a seat in an armchair and joined the non-action.

"What has transpired?" Teal'c asked of anyone who would answer.

"It's a long story." Daniel started. "But to make it short. Uh...." Daniel looked at Sam with a look that communicated all that Teal'c needed to assess the situation. "Sam and I ...we uh...."

"You are in love." He finished the sentence for him with one raised eyebrow being the only physical sign of his surprise.

"Yes." They both said together and grinned at each other. Vala rolled her eyes. Teal'c noted all of their reactions and looked back to Mitchell walking to the loveseat to have seat next to Vala.

"That's kinda why I wanted us all to get together tonight. Even though it's Christmas, we need to talk about this and what we're going to do about it as a team."

"Indeed. There is much to discuss."

"Hold that thought! I have an idea." Mitchell jumped up and ran down the hallway to his room. Moments later he came bounding back, in his hands a deflated blow-up toy.

"What's this?" Daniel asked slowly and suspiciously.

Mitchell held up his finger before he began to blow up the toy, turning red in the face as he inflated it.

"What is it?" Vala asked

"It's a blow-up baseball bat." Sam answered, eying Mitchell like he was touched.

"No, it's a talking stick." Cam started, trying to catch his breath and shake off the dizziness that the quick inflation had caused. He hoisted the yellow, plastic, air-filled bat, one that he one at a carnival years ago, and held it aloft for everyone to see.

"When I was a cub scout we used a talking stick whenever we had meetings. Now, whoever had the talking stick, had the floor and could speak their mind without anyone else interfering. So, that's what we'll do tonight; anyone who wants to speak, uses the bat....er, talking stick. Got it?"

Looks were exchanged across the room, most of them of incredulity directed towards him, but he ignored them for the most part.

"Okay....I'll start." He cleared his throat. "I just want you all to know that since I joined the team, I've had more adventures, excitement, scary moments, near-death experiences and fun than I think I have had in all of the years before and I've come to think of y'all as family. With that being said, I think the time has come for us all to talk about the future of our team and where we go from here. I'm determined to see that we stick together-we're a team and we're a pretty damn good one, but things as they are, can't stand and none of are leaving until we get things straightened out."

"Mitchell...." Daniel started, before Cam could start speaking again, but was cut off by a whack across the head from the plastic bat in Cam's hands.

"Ow-what was that for?"

"Sorry, I forgot to mention that anyone who interrupts the person with the talking stick gets whumped."

"Funny, I don't think cub scouts were allowed to hit each other." Daniel complained, but was cut short again by another blow from the toy.

"Okay! Shutting up."

"Good...As I was saying. We need to talk." He held the bat out. "Anyone who wants to talk, just grab the stick and we'll listen."

For a moment everyone was silent and no one moved.

"C'mon...." Cam waggled the bat. Vala then grabbed it from his hands.

"Alright. I've got a few things I would like to say. I think you all know why I joined SG1 and was ever allowed to be a part of the team. It's no secret that the SGC only wanted me because I was Adria's incubator for the Ori and had a connection with her. But now that she's gone and the Ori are defeated and the Goa'uld aren't much of a threat anymore, I'm not sure why I'm still here. I've been doing a lot of thinking and I'm wondering if it might be time for me to move on....."

Teal'c raised an eyebrow, Sam gasped a little, Mitchell shot her a surprised look while Daniel just got angry.

"Vala, don't be stupid..." Daniel shot out and stood. Vala was up quickly, hitting him over the head with the bat just as Mitchell had done earlier.

"Don't interrupt the talking stick, Daniel." In retaliation he snatched the bat out of her hands.

"Fine, Gimme that thing." He whirled on her, pointing the toy in her direction.

"Are you crazy, Vala?" He nearly shouted, taking everyone by surprise. "Do you really think that the SCG, General Landry, Mitchell, and the rest of us only wanted you on the team because we needed you to get to Adria? It's so stupid, I can barely wrap my head around it! You proved yourself, you changed and you earned your place here. I think we all know the real reason you want to run....." He trailed off and looked back to Sam, softening his voice and turning back to Vala with a heavy sigh.

"I know that seeing Sam and I together must have hurt you and I'm truly, very sorry, but running doesn't solve anything, it just leaves hurt feelings and friends behind. You were right earlier, I am a hypocrite. I told you repeatedly that I didn't want to be more than friends with you because we were teammates, and now I want so much to be more than teammates with Sam. It was an excuse and a cowardly way to avoid you, but I just can't help the way I feel about Sam. I didn't want to hurt you, but I did anyway and I'm sorry. I sorry too that you thought that we could be more than just friends but that's all I ever really wanted to be.....and you _are_ one of my best friends, Vala and I hope always will be. I care about you...I really do. But I'm in love with Sam and we nearly lost our friendship because of things left unsaid, but I don't want to lose your friendship over this and most of all I don't want you to go. If anyone had to go because we find out we can't work together anymore, it's going to be me..." He handed the bat back to Mitchell and sat back down next to Sam, who took his hand as he bowed his head and looked to the floor.

"Okay. This has to stop. No one is leaving. Got it?, No one. We're going to work this out. all of us." Mitchell told the quieted group. Sam got up and took the bat from Mitchell.

"I've got something I want to say." She looked to Daniel before turning to Vala. "I've run away before Vala, and Daniel's right, it doesn't solve problems, it only creates new ones. I want to apologize to you, too. I have to admit to being pretty jealous of the friendship you and Daniel have and because of that, I haven't been as good of a friend as I should have been to you. I've never had a sister and friendships with other women have been few and far between for me, but it doesn't have to be that way anymore." Sam was near tears as she spoke. "I love Daniel, but I don't want to be the one that keeps you two from being friends and I especially don't want to be the one that's responsible for breaking up our team again, so you need to stay Vala. Daniel's right, you earned your place here and you're our family." Having said her peace, Sam cleared her throat to hold the tears back as she handed the bat back to Mitchell.

"Teal'c, you have anything to add?" Mitchell asked.

"Indeed." Teal'c reached over and took the bat and faced Daniel and Sam.

"DanielJackson and ColonelCarter, while I am still surprised to learn of this new development in your relationship, it is not unwelcome news and I celebrate with you in your new found happiness. I have been aware of the distance between the both of you that has grown over the years and it is good to see the gap closed once again I had always hoped that you would both find some measure of joy in your lives, especially considering the fact that the last few years have been so challenging." He turned to Vala and addressed her next.

"As for you, Vala Mal Doran, I too believe you to be in error in believing that you are not needed on SG1, you have always been and always will be a valued member of our team. I too know how it feels to be an alien on a strange world millions of miles from home. While I have missed my family on Chulak greatly, I have nonetheless come to realize how strong the bonds of friendship can bind people as close as blood. You are included in those bonds, ValaMalDoran as much as everyone else in this room is and I would be remiss if you were not aware of this."

Vala was beginning to show signs of crumbling before she flung herself in Teal'c's direction and smothered him in a giant bear hug.

"Thank-You, Muscles. You know I love you, right?" She spoke into his ear for just him to hear. He patted her back affectionately with the slightest hint of a smile curling up around the corners of his mouth. Eventually she pulled herself off, but decided to perch herself on his lap, Teal'c offered no resistance to the close contact as Vala turned to face the rest of the team before taking the bat from Teal'c hands.

"Alright, my turn. ...." She paused and looked down at her hands before quickly swiping at an errant tear and thinking of what to say.

"I never really had family gatherings like this Christmas thing you all celebrate and I never really knew how important it was to be.... needed. In the past it was just so much easier to go it alone rather than get too involved with people, especially when you work as a con artist. So, it's been challenging, to say the least, to learn how to trust. There have been many times when I questioned why anyone would trust me as well. Perhaps that's why I thought it would be so much easier to just leave."

"Vala, c'mon...." She swiftly got up and knocked him over the head with the bat again.

"Quit interrupting, Daniel. I was going to say that I spoke too soon earlier, that I was just letting off a little smoke."

"Steam." Daniel corrected. She threatened him with the bat again and he held up his hands in defense, grinning despite himself. She smiled and backed off before speaking again.

"Anyway, I know that families don't always get along, believe me; you've all met my father.... but I had my eyes opened by each of you tonight and have come see just how wrong I was and how much I need each of you; how we all need each other. Daniel, you were the first person to show any kind of real faith in me and I suppose I took that to mean more than just friendship, but it was only your way of being a good friend by supporting me. And Sam, I too never had a sister, but you're as close to one as I could ever hope for and I'm on my way to being happy for you two; just give me a little while to adjust and I'll survive. Now, you two go and have babies and stuff." She took a deep breath and faced Cam, her eyes relaying gratitude.

"Thanks, Mitchell...for everything. What more do I need to say?" She placed the toy bat on the coffee table in front of her and clapped her hands, slipping easily into a mischievious smile. "Well, now that all of the sappy stuff is out of the way and the future of our team appears to be secure.... didn't someone say we had pie?"

To Be Continued......


	11. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: As always, I own no part of Stargate SG1 or its characters.

_Well, this is it. We have reached the end of this Christmas saga. ***wipes sweat from brow*** I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have had fun writing it. I wish each and every one of you the merriest Christmas. Enjoy your families and the holidays! :)_

**Chapter 10**

"You know, I didn't really like this stuff very much at first, but it's really starting to grow on me." Vala said with a slur as she tried to take a drink of her latest round of Irish cream while hanging upside down off of the loveseat cushions. Managing to miss her mouth completely and landing instead on her face and the floor, Mitchell took the glass from her hands and sat her upright.

"Alright, Princess. I think you've had just about enough."

"Awww-party's over?"

"I'm afraid it's been over for a while, C'mon...." He hauled her to her feet and she swayed.

"Whoah....That was fun......." She suddenly turned a bright shade of green "But on second thought....maybe I don't like that stuff anymore" At a run she took off down the hall with Cam close behind. Daniel lay with his feet up on the coffee table watching them sprint away before closing his eyes, willing the room to stop spinning. Sam lay nearly asleep with her head in his lap, spread out across the length of the couch, both of them grinning as Cam called out down the hall, out of their field of vision.

"Second door on the right!.....No, not that right!.....Awww Vala, not the carpet."

"Poor Vala." Sam stated with sympathy and a with a slight slur of her own "She's gonna be in a world of hurt come tomorrow...Come to think of it, we're gonna too." Daniel grunted in agreement, laying his hand over her head and stroking her hair to comfort her.

"Poor Cam." Daniel added with a little snort. "And he just got new carpet a few weeks ago."

Hours earlier, after deciding that it was best for everyone to stay at Mitchell's place rather than head out into the snowstorm which was quickly burying them under piles of the powdery white stuff, they had taken up a friendly game of Monopoly to pass the time away.

Teal'c quickly shot into the lead and soon it degenerated into a drinking game for the four other teammates as Mitchell dug into his liquor supplies. Each had a shot of whatever drink Mitchell had whipped up for them everytime Teal'c placed a house or hotel on his properties. Soon they were all very sloshed except for Teal'c, who was very rich. Daniel could not recall a board game ever being so much fun before, especially once Vala had taken to employing the toy inflatable bat from their talk earlier anytime someone landed on her property and owed her money. She would quickly swipe them over the head before she announced with glee how much they needed to pay in rent.

But as the game wore on and the friends grew ever relaxed with the alcohol, the bat quickly exchanged hands and soon everyone, including Teal'c was using it to beat each other into payment. By the end, only the former Jaffa warrior was really able to use it, the others being out of properties or too drunk to notice if anyone landed on their holdings. Surprisingly, Teal'c appeared to be enjoying dishing out the play beatings the most, even allowing a full-blown smile to escape at one point as he smacked his opponents into submission. Daniel accused him after that of having pent-up rage issues.

After the game, everyone settled by the fire. While Vala ate the rest of the pie and sat in Teal'c's lap again, more drinks were consumed and they talked late into the evening, exchanging jokes and stories and laughing until tears came, most especially at the fantasy's each had about how they were going to kill Felger come Monday. Through it all, Daniel felt a warmth and closeness with his team, his family really, that he hadn't felt in a long time, at least not since Jack left. With Sam by his side, there was a completeness to his life that he hadn't had since Abydos and Sha're.

Now, as it neared midnight, the fire was dying and Teal'c had retired to occupy Mitchell's guest room for the rest of the night. Daniel and Sam were finally alone for the first time that evening. sliding up, she placed a soft kiss against his lips, which he returned with passion, grabbing the back of her head to bring her ever closer to him. Sam's hand went under his sweater, sending shivers of pleasure up his spine as her warm hands moved across his bare skin. She abandoned his lips, moving to the side of his neck and nibbled his earlobe.

"Saaaam....You gotta be careful, Vala and Mitchell are right down the hall" He whispered as she moved her hands into dangerous territories, creating a situation that he may not be able to back down from.

"I know." She groaned into his ear. "But you're pretty irresistible." her hot breath against his neck made it harder and harder to resist her ministrations, somehow they managed to disengage and Sam settled for resting her head against his chest. He would have loved for her to keep going and boy, he couldn't wait to take her home. Just as he was beginning to think that the journey through the snow back to his place may be worth the risk, Mitchell came back to the living room, Vala no where in sight.

"How's Vala?" Sam asked, sitting up wobbly.

"She out, she's got my bed tonight." He went to a closet and pulled out a sleeping bag. "I'm gonna go sleep on the floor in there and keep an eye on her, just in case she decides she's not done decorating my floor. You two can have the couches in here....just no hanky-panky, got it?"

"Who us?" Daniel shrugged innocently, exchanging a knowing grin with Sam.

" 'Night y'all. Mer' Christmas" He mumbled and waved tiredly as he stumbled down the hall, disappearing into his room. Alone again, Daniel looked to Sam and she to him.

"I just want you to know that I've had the best Christmas that I can remember, thanks to you." He told her.

Turning to face her completely, he took her face into his hands and kissed her yet again, slowly and gently this time, enjoying the softness of her lips and the feel of her hair through his fingers. Sam responded, snuggling closer to his body. His hands traveled down her back, but he dared not to take them any lower, despite being quite drunk and very much wanting to, he had to respect the fact that other people were sleeping not too far away. After reluctantly ending the kiss, they settled into each other's arms, both feeling the pull of sleep come over them. Daniel reached for a blanket that Cam had brought out and wrapped it around them, sharing the warmth. As Sam's eye began to close and she rested her head against his chest she sighed contentedly.

"I've had the best Christmas too." She whispered before losing the battle against her droopy eyelids. He smiled in satisfaction, letting his eyes close, holding Sam tight as he thought about how each Christmas from then on could only get better and better.

**The End**


End file.
